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Nickel Revolution Lost Recordings FOUND

The discovery of one reel-to-reel tape by Kent Saunders had everyone in the Nickel Revolution on pins and needles for a couple of weeks. Would the tape still be good after over 40+ years of sitting in storage?

Kent was meticulous in his efforts and after testing a couple of other tapes, loaded the band’s only recordings on to his antique Fostek deck…the tape played. He avoided overplaying it until the transfer to digital could be made. On Monday, November 21, 2011, he was able to forward MP3 copies to the band members. What a delight to listen to the recordings and finally have something we could share with our families and friends. Two recordings of the Nickel Revolution from 1968, recorded at Dove Recording Studios, Bloomington, Minnesota.

BONUS Discovery: Thanks to Kent Saunders we have located our sax player, John Berman. Beyond being and excellent musician and vocalist, Kent is also an amateur missing persons detective. After checking with the Minneapolis Musicians Union, Kent found out that the “Fly,” (John Berman’s nickname) had headed west and was living in the Los Angeles area. None of Kent’s phone calls connected, so he used the old school method of sending a letter. Kent explained that the Nickel Revolution was holding a reunion in 2012 and wanted to invite him. He gave John names and numbers and the Fly called the Bear. Hopefully John will be with us, onstage, for the reunion. Kent truly deserves a musician’s thank you–which doesn’t include any money. But, we are grateful for his hard work on this one. (Photo below of the Fly taking five at Dove Recording Studios.)

Sweet, Sweet Lovin’

Kent arranged the instrumental track and coached the rest of us on singing the background vocals. Here is the line up:

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See these great websites for further insights to Twin Cities bands from the 50s, 60s, 70s: